Menu

What an eventful and exciting week it has been. YEH JAWAANI HAI DEEWANI, the second project by the WAKE UP SID team of Karan Johar, UTV, Ranbir Kapoor and Ayan Mukherji, has run amok, shattering every record in sight at the domestic BO. East, West, North, South… every centre, every circuit has recorded fantabulous collections. All of a sudden, the mood in the industry is buoyant.

Of course, YEH JAWAANI HAI DEEWANI was expected to start with gusto, but no one expected the keenly-anticipated film to cross the Rs 60 cr mark in its first three days. I am sure, even KJo must’ve been surprised by the record business the film has done [and continues to do on weekdays]. What does one attribute the humungous start to? Last week, I did pinpoint a couple of reasons: “Ranbir’s tremendous popularity, the pairing of Ranbir-Deepika, the popularity of Aditya Roy Kapur after the super success of AASHIQUI 2, Ayan Mukerji’s credibility after WAKE UP SID, the trendy soundtrack, the right marketing and KJo’s brand value…” Now add two more reasons: Luck. Also, love stories that touch your heart, generally, find huge acceptance.

A successful film benefits everyone associated with it. KJo must be rejoicing for obvious reasons; Dharma Productions adds one more solid hit to its repertoire. Ayan, with this film, has consolidated his status as a bankable director. Ranbir has delivered yet another hit after BARFI! Ditto for Deepika, who’s enjoying a glorious run, with COCKTAIL, RACE 2 and YEH JAWAANI HAI DEEWANI hitting the bull’s eye. Aditya too stands to benefit tremendously with two back-to-back hits — AASHIQUI 2 and YEH JAWAANI HAI DEEWANI.

First AASHIQUI 2 and now YEH JAWAANI HAI DEEWANI, romance is back and how! PS: There’s something about this week. On 4 June 2010, RAAJNEETI emerged a big grosser… On 3 June 2011, READY took the box-office by storm… On 1 June 2012, ROWDY RATHORE set new records at the ticket window… This year, on 31 May 2013, YEH JAWAANI HAI DEEWANI is rewriting the rules of the game… Here’s yet another week the producers can eye while planning the release of their film/s. Think about it!

Director, producer, writer, chat show host, reality dance show judge: Karan Johar’s CV could rival that of the very best in showbiz. But the one thing the 41-year-old hasn’t done – a few cameos aside – is take up a serious acting role. Now, that is set to change.

Three days back, Karan decided to take up an offer to act in Anurag Kashyap’s next, Bombay Velvet (BV). Karan says the offer “came out of the blue”. In the film, he will be seen playing the “antagonist” opposite Ranbir Kapoor.

“Yes, it’s true that I’m acting in Bombay Velvet, and of course, it’s unusual for me,” Karan says, adding, “I was blown away by the narrative. And all the cast members – besides Ranbir and Anushka – have strong roles in Anurag’s film. Since I’m playing an antagonist, there are shades…

Of late, we have been seeing an increasing number of Bollywood stars rubbing shoulders with the who’s who of the western film industry. Taking things a bit differently is Bollywood’s perfectionist Khan, Aamir, who recently met none other than tech giant Microsoft’s co-founder Bill Gates.

The Microsoft co-founder Gates, who is currently on a tour to India, met with Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan on May 30. Commenting on his blog Gates stated, “I’m looking forward to meeting Aamir Khan, the Bollywood star and activist. I want to hear about his work as a UNICEF ambassador for child nutrition. I also want to hear about his TV show, Satyamev Jayate (Truth Alone Prevails), which is shining a light on some critical issues facing India. And maybe, if I’m lucky, he’ll show me a few dance moves.”